National Public Radio (NPR) had a multipart report on multitasking, and I was listening to the final installment this morning driving into work, 'Internal Chatter' Limits Multitasking As People Age  The NPR reporter said that current research shows a person’s highest level of multitasking ability is achieved in their twenties to thirties, and decreases thereafter.  

What this means is that a person who is 46 can not perform as fast as a person 26.  Forget job knowledge, mental maturity, or any of those supposed perks of getting older.  The 20-30 something person is going to wipe the floor with you in the test room. 

In these current studies, the reporter said, there was no evidence of a gender bias.  So, it doesn’t matter if you are a male or female, only the number of candles on your birthday cake count. 

I guess there is a lesson in this for Human Resources practitioners.  We have to be absolutely sure those multitasking tests we give candidates accurately reflect the skill necessary to successfully perform the primary duties of the job.  Actually, I am all for giving mental maturity tests so that we identify candidates who know when it is wise to try to multitask and when it is not.

It’s no rosy picture on the young person's side of the 20-30’s peak either, as evidenced by the finding that multitasking teens may be muddling their brains.  From this installment of NPR’s report we hear that multitasking causes a kind of brownout in the brain. A noted researcher says, “… all the lights go dim because there just isn't enough power to go around.”  

With the use of modern technology there is the general belief that we are able to accomplish more tasks at the same time, but in doing so our brains can disconnect from important information.  This means, in the end, it takes longer because we have to remind our brains what we were working on. 

"People can't multitask very well, and when people say they can, they're deluding themselves," said neuroscientist Earl Miller.  He also quipped, "The brain is very good at deluding itself." These quotes are pulled from, “Think You're Multitasking? Think Again”  which is the lead story from this NPR series.

For a more thought provoking (albeit whimsical and PG-13) view of multitasking try novelist Walter Kirn’s 2007 article in The Atlantic, “The Autumn of the Multitaskers” - Neuroscience is confirming what we all suspect: Multitasking is dumbing us down and driving us crazy. One man’s odyssey through the nightmare of infinite connectivity.

Well, now that I have finished clearing all my phone messages, rearranging the order in my file cabinet, opening incoming mail, eating the banana left over from yesterday, and changing my computer password all while putting this blog entry together, I guess I will disconnect at this… um… give me a moment…  let me see now… oh, yes… point. 

Now the only problem is where did I put that important letter I just opened? The one I wrote a voicemail call back number on… darn files… can’t find a thing.  Oh… here it is under the banana peal.

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P.S. I would have posted this earlier, but I was locked out of my computer until I remembered our long departed family pet’s name, a canary we called “Mr. Peeper”